Absinthe
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — Total Eclipse
captkirk_4 — 15 years ago(April 25, 2010 04:30 PM)
What exactly is this "Absinthe" stuff they drank in the 19th century? They had it on Bourdain's show as well and I hear it is illegal in the United States. Sounds sort of like some super potent moonshine, but there is supposed to be some secret ingredient that makes people go bonkers.
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Calmerkindastorm — 15 years ago(May 30, 2010 05:22 AM)
Absinthe is a highly alcoholic spirit, usually green coloured, it is diluted with water (as its 40 to 70% proof) and sugar added. It is aniseed in flavour, and has the plant wormwood in it, it is this that was meant to give hallucinations and open the mind. It was believed to be addictive and a halluciatry drug, and the drink was linked to bohemian artists and had the myth that if you drank too much it was linked to suicide. One pub in London I knew of, said it would never sell someone more than one glass of the drink for that 'reason'
Pernod is basically the same type of drink with the wormwood removed, it was this ingredient that means it was banned in some countries. Absinthe like pernod goes cloudy when water is added.
Absinthe addicts were said to be chasing the 'green fairy' Many artists and poets of the 19th century drank it, and it became a drink with a reputation, linked to murders, suicide and madness, but it was more the poster-boy drink of the era and so got the blame, than being truly responsible for such things.
life is not a succession of urgent "nows". It's a listless trickle of "why should I's". -
Nephilim-6 — 15 years ago(September 25, 2010 10:55 AM)
You can buy it in many countries legaly now though.
In fact I'm having a glass at this very moment. Bought it at the local liquor store here in Holland.
And yes it's quite strong. Having more than one glass won't make you suicidal though. Though because it's so strong it gives you a wicked hangover if you have too much of it.
Did you ever notice that people who believe in creationism look really un-evolved? - Bill Hicks -
jason_tasch — 15 years ago(November 11, 2010 07:06 AM)
There was a reference to absinthe on an episode of The IT Crowd. The Goth character, Richmond, is attending a dinner party at Jen's place. When she offers him a drink, he says he ONLY drinks absinthe. She tells him they have none, but would he like a Calsberg? He happily agrees.
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ken_kaniffff — 13 years ago(September 20, 2012 10:37 AM)
Absinthe is an anise spirit with a high alcohol content, I think generally around 60-70% ABV. It has a reputation of having psychoactive properties aside from just the alcohol, that it "gets you high" or "makes you trip" because of the thujone content, which is not true. I've had it and can confirm it is only a very strong alcoholic drink. I think for a long time it was illegal in the United States, but these days I believe it is only illegal to manufacture it here. It is legal to have it sent to the US from other countries and consume it.
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asmomo — 11 years ago(June 13, 2014 06:06 AM)
To be clear the name is French and the plant used is called absinthe in French (botanical name is Artemisia absinthium), so the drink is simply called by the name of the plant, something common for spirits in French.